By KUNA,
Brussels : It is time to acknowledge that military intervention in Afghanistan has failed and even led to a deterioration of security there, the European Parliament said in a report released Thursday.
The report blames the foreign forces for miscalculating their options. A new EU exit strategy needs to be shaped in full co-operation with the Afghans, and including the Taliban at the negotiating table, said the report.
The EU strategy for Afghanistan needs a radical rethink: first, the EU and its allies need to acknowledge continuous deterioration in security and socio-economic conditions there, despite almost a decade of international involvement, and also the need to involve Afghans fully in the exit strategy, says the report.
The coalition is increasingly perceived by Afghans as an occupying force, says the report, which criticizes the US for its “contradictory attempt to ‘decapitate’ the insurgency leadership using drones, US special forces and local militias, result in frequent civilian casualties and discredit the international intervention”.
Almost 32,000 soldiers are contributed by EU countries to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, representing 24.2 percent of the total ISAF troops.